Olympus
Small is beautiful
“If your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough,”said legendary photojournalist Robert Capa. The Olympus OM-D systemhas all the tools to help shoot stunning stills and video and that’s what I wanted to bring together for my short video. During this shoot at KewGardens, I spent themost time with theM.Zuiko Digital ED 60mm f/2.8Macro on the OM-D E-M1 Mark III.The camera’s responsive continuous autofocus proved really responsive and did a great job, evenwith the challenge of areas of even tone in poor light.
1 SETTING UP The OM-D EM-1 Mark III has an extensive and impressive feature set, but my needs for still shooting are quite modest. They are: Raw image format, aperture-priority autoexposure mode, multi-zone metering, auto white- balance and single-zone autofocus.With its intuitive handling and enhanced Super Control panel, camera set-up is a speedy process.
2 NOW SET UP FOR 4K For video, I went to the Video Menu>Specification Settings. Here, you set 4K (or Full HD or HD if you prefer) where there is also the choice of different frame rates.While you can start shooting video regardless of what’s set on the exposure mode dial (with the exception of B) by pushing the record button, a default exposure mode and focusing mode can be assigned to video shooting, too.
THE GEAR USED
3 STEADY AS YOU SHOOT Smooth video shooting is helped greatly by an effective in-body image stabilisation system and the OM-D E-M1 Mark III has one of the world’s best, with the sensor and new TruePic processing engine working together to give 7.5EV benefit with Sync IS and 7EV benefit with all Micro Four Thirds lenses. For this shoot, where there wasn’t much light about, especially in Palm House, so the OM-D E-M1 Mark III’s updated system proved a massive boon.
4 SHARP SHOOTING The OM-D E-M1 Mark III’s autofocusing system is another beneficiary of Olympus’s new TruePic IX processing engine with very fast, incredibly responsive focusing.With 121 all cross-type sensors covering most of the image frame, custom selectable AF patterns and advanced Face and Eye Priority AF, tracking a moving subject in continuous AF is reliable and accurate during video shooting.
KEY FEATURES
An OM-D EM-1 Mark III, Olympus’s newest Micro Four Thirds camera, was used for this shoot. It is a professional camera with a feature set designed to fulfil the exacting demands of expert content creators. The camera sensor has a 20.4-megapixel resolution and features a powerful new Olympus TruePix IX image processing engine for minimal image noise at high ISO settings and an image stabiliser that gives a 7.5EV benefit with lenses with Sync IS. For video, the camera offers 4K or Cinema 4K (C4K) and supports OM-Log400 shooting for footage with full highlight and shadow detail. The following M.Zuiko Digital ED lenses were used for this shoot: 12- 40mm f/2.8 Pro, 9-18mm f/4-5.6 and 60mm f/2.8 Macro.
› 20.4-megapixel resolution › NewTruePic IX image processor › Handheld and tripod high-res shot modes › In-body, five-axis image stabiliser with up to 7.5EVbenefit › Autofocus uses 121 point phase detect, all cross-type sensors › 18fps continuous shooting withAF/ AE tracking › Cinema 4K and 4K moviemodes › Weatherproof body
5 FOCUS MATTERS Pull focus technique – changing sharp focus fromone part of the scene to another with a smooth transition – is straightforward thanks to the OM-D E-M1 Mark III’s impressive continuous autofocus skills and touchmonitor. Face and Eye Detect also worked very impressively during continuous AF and accurately kept track of subjects.
6 CHECK YOUR SHOTS There’s not always time to check every still or piece of video footage, especially when the light is fading, but it is always worth having the occasional look just tomake sure you are getting what you want. The OM-D E-M1 Mark III proved a very capable companion and its lovely touch monitor showed I was getting first-rate results.
Issue 74 | Photography News 15
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